CARSTAIRS-DIDSBURY - A number of firefighters from both Carstairs and Didsbury fire departments did very well at the recent Firefighter Stairclimb Challenge at the Bow tower in Calgary.
The stairclimb challenge is an annual event in which firefighters raise money for the Wellspring Calgary charity and climb the stairs at the Bow tower in full firefighter gear. In total, the climb is 74 flights of stairs, 1,402 steps, and 778 vertical feet.
Dave Warnock, leader of the Carstairs contingent, said the stairclimb went very well.
"Everyone who attended from Carstairs made it to the top," said Warnock. "Unfortunately, Josh Van Arnam got called in to work and couldn't make it. We managed to fundraiser $2,760 and are pretty happy with how we did all the way around."
Tyler McNab was the top finisher among the Carstairs firefighters with a time of 22 minutes and 12 seconds. Justin Morton finished in 27:42; Austin Hogg did it in 33:35; Thane Schaffer got up to the top in 34:39; and Warnock finished in 35:07.
Didsbury stairclimb leader David Smith said he was proud of his team for all finishing the climb and doing so well.
"Everyone did very, very well," said Smith. "I was very proud and impressed with all of our team."
Kyray Falk had the best time for Didsbury completing the stairclimb in 14 minutes and four seconds, which placed him 26th out of 484 male climbers. Kyle Leeson did the climb in 15:46 and placed 76th, while Smith took 16:04 and placed 90th.
First-time climbers Ryder Falk and Rafael Beurgi finished the race in 21:54 and 22:03 respectively.
"For first-year climbing, if you get in that 20-minute range that's pretty good," he said. "I was really impressed with how they did. I was really proud of the whole team."
The group from the Didsbury Fire Department raised a total of $1,380.
The event itself raised about $400,000 for Wellspring Calgary, which provides programs, resources and support to people living with cancer. A portion of the net proceeds have also been donated to the Firefighters Assistance Charitable Society
